Backwoods Logging from SierraWest returns with our latest beauty including the quintessential logging scene right out of a Kinsey photograph! Folks this kit is so exciting there should be a parental warning label on the box. The kit comes with everything you will need to slip back in time to the days of old as you recreate this old world scene brimming with detail and logging charm. The Deer Creek Logging Camp series continues with the Essentials kit including the cookhouse, bunkhouses, shower/latrine car, Passenger Station with a standard/narrow gauge freight transfer, fuel depot, rigging shed, and tool shed.

Like all SierraWest kits, realistic detail and quality construction techniques are the groundwork I begin with to create a unique and enjoyable craftsmen kit. Essentials includes many laser cut components but these are used as a modeling aide, enhancing the appearance of the structures. Solid modeling and subtle weathering contributes to one of the finest dioramas I have ever created! Yes, I am that excited about this kit... In many of the photographs that follow you might be able to catch a glimpse of the Main Street diorama.

As you take the tour notice all of the little stories that are told with the careful attention to blending structures, details, and scenery. This view is of the narrow gauge side of the station with the Main Street diorama in the left foreground. One of the Essentials bunk houses is visible in the background. My manual includes detailed weathering and scene creation instructions that will allow you to re-create all of the wonderful "little stories" pictured here.

Here is a great view from behind the rigging and tool sheds. The Hotel and Dry Goods Store from Main Street is in the background. Essentials integrates beautifully with Main Street and I could not have asked for a better blending of material and colors. Attention is given to aging and coloring the wood so the building have a natural and interesting variation that is realistic. The methods and techniques employed to create the board on board walls provides a tremendous amount of individual control not found when modeling with scribed siding.

This view of the freight transfer side of the station (standard gauge track is visible on the right, narrow gauge out of view to the left) is taken from the eventual location of the loco and donkey shop diorama. The station is based on my favorite prototype line, the Nevada County Narrow Gauge and its Grass Valley and Nevada City stations. Every structure was created using prototype information as a base for added realism and functionality.

This shot was taken from behind the cookhouse looking out over the corner of Main Street with the Fuel Depot in the background. Essentials is detailed on all four sides maximizing your choices when placing the buildings on your layout. The layout is quite flexible allowing you to easily make different arrangements to suit your needs.

The Fuel Depot creates an impressive scene with super detailed views giving the depot a well used appearance. The group of tanks all clustered together include gasoline, oil, kerosene, diesel, and water. Everything your bustling logging empires needs to keep operating smoothly.

Here is a really neat shot sighting down the standard gauge mainline. The spindly walkway that winds it way atop the hillside between bunk houses is so seldom modeled and a real show stealer! Junk and clutter litter the area surrounding the bunk houses including the logged over forest scraps that have slid down the hill and now resides in the dry creek bed. What a classic logging scene!

A close-up view of the refueling yard and the well used tanks. What a busy scene loaded with the kind of detail and clutter I have been bring the modeling community since 1995. My resin and metal castings are legendary for detail and quality. Essentials includes over 100 great castings including dozens of new pieces I made just for this kit. Isn't this a great scene! It really illustrates the kind of structure variation found in Essentials. This gives you a lot of different materials to model with and makes for a terrific learning and modeling experience.

The sheds have so much detail and character that it is impossible to see all of it in one shot! The rigging shed is wide open and detailed inside with all the cable reels and rigging the company needs to rig spar trees and run donkeys in the woods. Discarded old wooden reels litter the surrounding area. The tool sheds dock is filled with blocks and tackle needed in the woods. The two sheds make a great pair and what a scene!

All of the wonderful scenery was created with the help of my buddy Jeff Crawford. The techniques and materials are fully explained in the construction manual. Retaining walls, rocky outcroppings, gravel roads, wash areas, etc... are integrated into the diorama seamlessly with the simple techniques utilized.